Alan Benzie

A lovely start to 2025

Had an absolute blast playing with Beth Malcolm and crew for 3 sold out shows, 2 at Perth Theatre and the final one at the Barony Hall for Celtic Connections. Great band, lovely people, fun and meaningful music - what more could you ask for? A supportive audience of course, and we certainly had that too! Thanks so much to everyone that came to see us. I played a short solo set before both Perth gigs, a great chance to test out a few new tunes and revisit some old ones - an extra thank you to everyone at those gigs for coming with me on my wee stories about Japan or rather silly theorising about sandwiches…

A wee look back

Well, 2024 really flew by. Getting to go back to Japan was my absolute highlight, but I’m happy to have been able to spend another year making great music with wonderful people and musicians, and passing on what little wisdom I have to my students and watching them move towards their various goals. The two album releases I wrote about below definitely stand out from a recording perspective, but I also had so much fun playing more live gigs with kitti’s Great Caledonian Songbook, Ali Watson Quartet and Fat-Suit this year. That’s not to mention a host of various things from Jazz Festivals to Saturday nights at the Jazz Bar, to driving around this beautiful country and just letting it fill my heart on the way.

A huge thank you to everyone that has come out to support both me personally and live music in general this year, and those who send me nice messages after gigs etc, it really does mean a lot. As always, I’m incredibly grateful and I’m looking forward to what 2025 might have in store.

Terrarium and Folkmosis

I’m delighted that two albums I played on are out this month, with both being pretty high up on my list of favourites to be a part of.

First is Ali Watson’s album “Terrarium”. I think many musicians don’t necessarily listen to records that they are on much (perhaps we hear too much of our own imperfections and so on), but I’ve been listening to this one a fair bit. I really like his tunes and I think his sound-world suits my piano playing and tendencies pretty well. It’s also always great to play with him, Matt Carmichael and Greg Irons, I think there is a great sympathy and group ethos there. He also has some lovely thoughts on music and improvisation that are connected to the album name and concept, and I think those who enjoy my approach to music and playing would likely enjoy this too - please do check it out.

Second is Beth Malcom’s “Folkmosis”. I remember doing a version of Beth’s tune “Choose My Company” with Fat-Suit a few years back and absolutely loving both the tune and Beth’s voice. So I was really pleased when she asked me to play some piano on her new record - and it’s quite something! Her folk roots are central, but there are lots of other influences from jazz to pop, indie, electronica etc, so it was really fun to search for the space in that where I could best serve the music and be myself at the same time. The album also has a strong sense of concept and narrative, and some thoughtful messages about growing up, identity, and the importance of traditions, stories and songs in our modern world. We will be performing the music in the new year at Perth Concert Hall and Celtic Connections, so do stay tuned for that too. In the meantime, you can find the album here.

It’s Already Autumn

Had a fantastic summer with lots of playing including great gigs at Glasgow and Edinburgh Jazz Festivals, good fun and food for thought teaching on the Napier Jazz Summer School, and finally a good chance to play some tennis for the first time in quite a while! We then had one of the best Septembers I can remember in Scotland, and I was lucky enough to be all over the place enjoying mountains, lochs, forests, glens and moors on the way to and from gigs, including one of the most amazing sunsets I’ve ever seen in Glencoe.

Especially looking forward to November playing with Fat-Suit (including our first home Glasgow gig in a very long time), Ali Watson Quartet (and the release of his new album), and kitti’s Great Caledonian Songbook at Dundee Jazz Festival. Details on those and other gigs here.

June/July

A slightly more relaxed summer on the way this year, with highlights being Fat-Suit at Eden Fest and kitti’s Great Caledonian Songbook at Glasgow Jazz Festival in June, Konrad Wiszniewski Quintet with Daniele Raimondi and Brian Molley Quartet at the Edinburgh Jazz Festival in July, and of course, the Napier Jazz Summer School! There are some other bits and bobs too, details on the gigs page.

Japan

I had an absolutely incredible couple of weeks in Japan! Having not been in so long, I wanted to experience some new things, and so I did a bit more planning this time. As well as catching up with a couple of friends, I also cycled the “Shimanami Kaido” (an amazing route that connects several islands from Onomichi in Hiroshima Prefecture, to Ehime on the island of Shikoku). I should mention that I hadn’t been on a bike in many years, and it was quite a painful experience! Absolutely worth it though, I’d love to do it again some day. I also visited Amano Iwato Shrine in Miyazaki Prefecture, not only utterly beautiful, but also a place of some significance in Japanese mythology.

I was lucky in that the cherry blossoms were late this year. I have never seen them in full bloom, and had expected not to this time, but perhaps they waited for me... I even got to share an impromptu “hanami” (flower viewing) with a kind man who struck up a conversation and even offered me one of his beers. I was reminded that some things, in this case the transient beauty of nature, can be universal and grant us opportunities to come together despite differences in language, age, nationality etc. A little trite to some, perhaps, but a wonderful thing all the same I think! Of course, music can have this power too, and it’s one of the things I value and love about getting to do what I do. 

I like to be in the moment as much as possible (cue the usual jazz musicians quips here), and a little old-school as this may seem, that usually involves keeping my phone firmly in my pocket. However, this once I did take a rather large number of photos by my standards, and looking at them now is giving me inspiration - maybe they’ll help me continue a couple of the new tunes I started in Japan… If that leads to some worthwhile new music I will write about it here. 

Lastly I also caught two great concerts - Danilo Pérez with John Patitucci and Brian Blade (I haven’t seen this trio since I was in Boston!), and some really cool music from Japanese pianist Hitomi Nishiyama - check her out!

For now, I’m back in Scotland and getting ready to play with Ali Watson Quartet at Langtoun Jazz Festival. A great antidote to the end of holiday blues! 

New music on the way, a Scottish March and a Japanese April

Just finished recording the Ali Watson Quartet album, and I like how the rough tracks are sounding - Stuart Hamilton at Castlesound was his usual brilliant self and I think we came together really nicely. Can’t wait to see how the final tracks turn out, and to share the music when the album is done!

I’m now preparing for a solo piano concert at the Cowdray Hall for Aberdeen Jazz Festival in March, and I’ll also be doing a really fun project with the mega kitti and Seonaid Aitken, playing arrangements of music by Scottish writers and musicians from Robert Burns to Emeli Sandé. The project actually debuted at Islay Jazz Festival last year, but we’ll be playing at Aberdeen Jazz festival, on Arran, and in Edinburgh later in the month. More info here.

I’m tremendously excited to then be heading to Japan for a couple of weeks in April, for my first proper holiday and first time in Japan for a loooooong time! Anyone that has been to an Alan Benzie Trio gig will know about my interest in Japan and its influence on my music, and I’m sure I’ll come back full of inspiration.

And food, lots of food.

Happy New Year!

It was great to have a good rest over the festive season, and now a very nice start to the year with Ali Watson Quartet at the Blue Lamp, Martin Kershaw at the Jazz Bar and the Jazz Bar World Premiere Quintet all this week. I have also already been in the studio, playing piano for a project doing jazz versions of Hong Kong pop songs - not something I ever thought I’d be doing, but it’s a great band (Andrew Robb on bass, Alyn Cosker on drums, Patrick Kenny on trombone) and there are some tasty chords in there.

February is even more exciting, as we will be recording Ali Watson’s first full album as a leader at Castlesound Studios in Pencaitland. I think the quartet is really sounding connected, and the music is beautiful and absorbing, so I’m really looking forward to how the album turns out. More on that in due course. For now, wishing you all a happy and healthy 2024!

(Almost) another one in the books

Each year seems to be flying past faster than the last! I feel like I say this in some way every year, but I always feel grateful for the chance to play all this different music with different people, to have great collaborations and relationships, for the thanks and encouragement I get through this site and the conversations after gigs. That’s not to say there haven’t been challenges and difficulties, but I’m left feeling positive as the year starts to come to a close.

For now, just a couple more gigs in December - the Jazz Bar World Premiere Quintet on the 2nd, and Ben MacDonald’s Legit on the 13th - also at the Jazz Bar. I’m looking forward to those, and to making more music in 2024!

Islay and October/November

What a wonderful couple of days on Islay for the jazz festival, it really is unique! I love the intimate gigs and amazing scenery, the music was not bad too… As always, the audiences were so warm and enthusiastic, be it hardcore jazz fans, or folk on holiday and popping in, or Islay residents. Thank you so much to everyone who listened so attentively and applauded thunderously - you made each gig a great vibe! I always leave thinking I must go back to with more time to go rambling, maybe next year.

In October/November I’ll be playing with Ali Watson Quartet, Jazz Samba with Brian Molley, a few more tour dates with Anton Du Beke, and a very special Mezcla gig with Luca Manning at London Jazz Festival.

As always, more info on the gigs page.

Post-Jazz Festival happenings

July was pretty full on, but I had a blast playing so much different music! The next while is a little calmer, with a couple of Fat-Suit gigs and a short run playing for Anton Du Beke at the Fringe (yes, the Fringe isn’t exactly calm to be fair). Into September, I’m have some dates playing Brian Molley’s re-workings of music from the seminal Jazz Samba album, duo with Helena Kay in Edinburgh, and then a few days at Islay Jazz Festival. Do check out more detail here, and come and say hello if you make it to a gig!

Edinburgh Jazz Festival time

I’m lucky to have a rather insane schedule during Edinburgh Jazz Festival this year - 8 gigs in 7 days plus teaching for the always fun and inspiring Napier Jazz Summer School on 5 of those days! Ok, well a couple of those gigs are in Glasgow… As ever, more info here.

A rare Marton

So great to have Marton Juhasz over from Switzerland for a trio concert at Music in Lanark, he really is a wonderful player and great friend. Ali Watson did a fantastic job of stepping in for Andrew Robb and I was able to test out a couple of new tunes too. Thanks to the audience for some interesting title suggestions… I don’t have any pictures etc from the concert (typical), but I did take some on a walk up Beinn Dubh with Marton the day before - and what a day! I really do feel so lucky to live in such a beautiful country, with this kind of scenery only a short drive away.

Also looking forward to playing with Ali’s new quartet for Glasgow Jazz Festival next month, the music is really coming together nicely. A bit more info on that and other things on the gigs page.

Collaborations new and old

No New Year’s resolutions here, but something new in the form of playing piano and organ on the next Blue Rose Code single. It was fun to do something a little different, but the song also has a salient message - it’s called Thirteen Years, do go and have a listen if you are interested.

Over the next couple of months I’m playing with Atom Eyes at Aberdeen Jazz Festival, with David Bowden and Konrad Wiszniewski (each in new collaborations with artists from Luxembourg as part of Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival’s “Spark” weekend), and then another new project for me - bassist Ali Watson’s new quartet with Matt Carmichael and Greg Irons. Ali’s music is lovely, with his own take on the bringing together of Scottish and other influences with modern jazz, and we’ll be recording a few tunes to be released later in the year. I’ll no doubt write about that when the time comes, and in the meantime, you can check the gigs page for where I’m playing live.

That was quick

Hard to believe it’s almost the end of the year already! I’ve been enjoying some calm after a pretty intense couple of months playing and teaching all over the place. Just a couple of things coming up - Mezcla at the Blue Lamp on the 1st of December and the Jazz Bar World Premiere Quintet on the 17th, then some real down time until next year. I won’t pretend I haven’t had some mixed feelings about being “back to normal” this year, and I do think many people have been left rather behind in all that, but it has been great to be playing again and to see the joy on the faces of musicians and listeners alike. I’m especially grateful to everyone who has come to see me play, bought my music, sent me lovely messages and filled me with a sense of connection and purpose, a huge thank you!

Funnily enough, one of my highlights this year was the time between our Fat-Suit gigs in Aberdeen and Glenbuchat. While we spent a fair bit of time in Aberdeenshire as kids (my family are all from there), this was the first time I had time in the area with my own car and no particular plan. The weather was glorious, and late Autumn in Aberdeenshire is just gorgeous, my heart felt so full just rambling around for a day. I often feel pictures struggle to do that feeling justice, but here are a few anyway…

Ryan Quigley Quintet, Fat-Suit, and some other bits and bobs

Well, I’m going to be doing a lot of driving over the next month. I’m playing two gigs with Ryan Quigley’s quintet (one in London and one in Norfolk), back to Scotland, then 3 gigs with Fat-Suit in the South of England, back up to play with Mezcla, Martin Kershaw and Matt Carmichael, back down to Manchester and Bristol for more Fat-Suit, then a TRYPL gig at Marsden Jazz Festival, then up to Scotland again for Fat-Suit in Aberdeen, Glenbuchat and Edinburgh. I’ll be playing in the Jazz Bar World Premiere Quintet at the end of the month and the beginning of next month, as well as a Mezcla gig for Edinburgh Jazz Festival’s Autumn series. At times like this, I’m conscious that I’m lucky to be doing lots of different things with great musicians and people - very grateful!

A wee video

It was wonderful to play duo with Helena Kay again, a lunchtime concert in the beautiful Great Hall at St Barts in London. We played a few of Helena’s tunes and a few of mine, you can watch the video below:

Summer just round the corner

Had some lovely things in May, returning to Skye Live Festival with Fat-Suit, and playing duo with the brilliant Helena Kay for the Cross Trust Artists of the Year concert, as part of Perth Festival of the Arts. I have admired Helena’s playing and writing for a while, and it was great to properly play together for the first time.

The next while sees another Fat-Suit gig (at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh), and then two gigs with Ryan Quigley at Glasgow Jazz Festival - one with the mighty latin jazz band TRYPL, and the other with his big band. I’ll also be playing a live session with TRYPL for a live session on Jazz Nights (BBC Radio Scotland), so do tune in for that on the 12th of June!

In July I’ll be playing again with TRYPL, Atom Eyes, and a number of different gigs at Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival - check the gig page for a bit more info. I’m also very much looking forward to teaching for the Napier Jazz Summer School during the jazz festival, it’s going to be quite a week…

It’s been a while

Well, I haven’t updated things here in a while - it’s certainly been a strange and difficult year. It’s good to have some fun things to look forward to this month though, including a Tribute to The Headhunters (Herbie Hancock era) at The Blue Lamp in Aberdeen, an Alan Benzie Trio gig for Jazz at St James in Edinburgh and a quartet gig with Martin Kershaw at The Jazz Bar (also Edinburgh). More details on the gig page.

Too much pasta, Animals on tour and more Fat Suit

I had an absolutely wonderful first trip to Florence to play with a new band, the brainchild of my good friend from Berklee days, Italian saxophonist Leonardo Radicchi. Also in the band are Ferdinando Romano on bass, and one of my closest friends and musical comrades, Marton Juhasz on drums. We spent a few days rehearsing, performing and recording an album - more on that when it comes out. I was so struck by the beautiful countryside around Florence, not to mention the city itself, so much amazing history and culture in one place. I also ate A LOT of delicious pasta, but we won’t dwell on that…

Now looking forward to Animal Society’s first proper tour, including a gig at EFG London Jazz Festival, and then to the last leg of our Fat Suit album release tour. So, I’ll be bouncing around the UK for a few weeks until things quiet down a bit in December - as ever, more details on the gigs page!

A special one

Tommy Smith has been marking the 40th anniversary of the Queen's Hall with 4 concerts this year, and I was delighted to be asked if the trio might support his fantastic quartet for one of them, on the 17th of October. The Queen's Hall will always be special for me, as I got to see some of my heroes there when I was getting started. Esbjörn Svensson Trio sticks out to me, as Esbjörn himself got me a guest ticket for my birthday - I'll never forget it and will be thinking of him when we play there.

Some of my most formative early experiences in jazz came through playing in Tommy's Youth Jazz Orchestra and I know the same is true for many of my peers, not to mention those who came through the jazz course he set up at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow (which celebrates 10 years this year, time flies!). The concert also marks the start of a brand new festival of Scottish jazz under the name of Gallus: A Scottish Jazz Weekend, and you only need to glance at the programme to see the influence of that course on the young Scottish jazz scene. Incidentally, I’ll also be playing with Mezcla and Ben MacDonald’s new quartet during the festival.

So, today I'm celebrating the old and the new, looking back at the road I've travelled so far, appreciating those who have taught and helped me along the way, remembering people gone too soon, enjoying the strength and variety of the Scottish jazz scene - but most of all, I can't wait to play with Andrew and Marton again!

Alan Benzie Trio in Hungary, Fat Suit new album release

I had a wonderful time playing with the trio at the Opus Jazz Club in Budapest. Not just a jazz club, the Opus also has a classical performance space, studio, rehearsal spaces, accommodation, restaurant - it’s quite a place. That’s not to mention the gorgeous Fazioli piano, a dream to play! Needless to say Andrew and Marton were sounding great, and despite living far away from each other I think there is something new happening in our sound as a trio - or maybe our different experiences in different places are making that happen, who knows…

I’m now looking forward to the first leg of a multi-legged Fat Suit tour to release our new album “Waifs and Strays”! The fact that the album even got finished was a miracle, and thanks to almost sheer stubbornness and way over and above contributions of time, skill and energy from many people. When we found ourselves the victims of Pledge Music going bust and losing the money we had been humbled to receive from a successful crowdfunder, I thought it wouldn’t happen, but it has! So, come and hear music from ridiculous miracle album and maybe buy a copy or two? More details on the gigs page.

Islay Jazz Festival 2019

Looking forward to 2 great gigs at Islay Jazz Festival, both projects of bassist David Bowden. The first is with Mezcla, and the second is playing Mingus Ah Um. Islay is one of my favourite festivals, and not just because of the free whisky! No, the rugged beauty of the island and the intimacy of the festival - where you might even find yourself getting a lift to the gig from an audience member - is such a great combination. And yes, you don’t have many other chances to do a gig in a distillery…

Ceol’s Craic, It’s Finally Happening, and Edinburgh Jazz Festival

I did a wee interview for the eclectic radio show “Ceol’s Craic” on Celtic Music Radio. We talked about my beginnings, projects and thoughts about Glasgow Jazz Festival, you can listen to it here (for another couple of weeks):

http://podcast.canstream.co.uk/celticmusic/index.php?cat=Ceol%20Craic%20

Also excited to be heading into the studio again, this time to record some of Mark Scobbie’s music - he is perhaps best known as the drummer for Manran and Fat Suit, but he has been writing cool tunes for quite some time. A few of them are scattered across Fat Suit albums but it’s going to be great fun doing a whole bunch in one place!

Finally, the trio will be making an appearance at Edinburgh Jazz Festival this year - with a special guest! Also going to be playing with Mezcla, more details on the gigs page…

Glasgow Jazz Festival

Looking forward to playing with 3 bands at the Glasgow Jazz Festival soon - we play in the Old Fruitmarket with Mezcla and Fat Suit at the JPN Showcase (Graham Costello’s STRATA too!) and then the Blue Arrow with Animal Society. Details on the gigs page!

Fat-Suit in Denmark

Had a mega time in Denmark with Fat Suit over the last week and a half. We were fortunate to have good weather, nice audiences and were very well looked after by the venues - safe to say I can’t wait to go back! I might add that the 20-odd hour drive to Germany (our stop either side of Denmark) and back felt significantly shorter thanks to a Nintendo Switch and the new Smash Bros game… Looking forward, I have gigs with Animal Society and Mezcla in Edinburgh in the next couple of weeks, and then recording Mezcla’s debut album (we have an EP but this is the first proper one). More details on the gigs on the gigs page, and more on the record when it’s done!

April Animals and Bremen bound

Excited to be launching our Animal Society EP with a few gigs this month - Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Glasgow. As ever, you can find more details on the gigs page. Also looking forward to attending Jazzahead in Bremen again this year, big thank you to Jazz From Scotland and Creative Scotland for the opportunity to head there as one of the artists representing the scene here and with some financial support!

Animal Society and Gus Stirrat Band

We have just released Animal Society’s first full length video/track! Check it out here: https://www.facebook.com/animalsocietyband/

In other news, Gus Stirrat Band will be playing our first gig in… well, let’s just say a long time. Gus is so prodigiously busy playing bass (including Fat Suit and Animal Society) and running his own studio that he barely has time for his own stuff. But when it happens, the energy is off the scale! We play at the Blue Arrow tomorrow, Thursday the 7th of March.

Also had a lovely time doing Mike Maran’s show about R D Laing - look at this sky before the gig in Tullynessle!

An actor, a pianist and a psychiatrist walk into a bar

You’l have to write the punchline yourself, but I’m about to head up north to Aberdeenshire with Mike Maran to do a show about R D Laing. I had a wonderful time doing his show about Chet Baker in France last summer, and this one is also great fun - quite a bit darker musically speaking, but with some sublime choices by the original pianist for the show, Dave Milligan. Looking forward to putting my own spin on it with Mike soon! We are in Crathes on Feb 22nd and Tullynessle on the 23rd.

Fat Suit Album 4 and Celtic Connections

Just finished recording album 4 with Fat Suit, what a blast! We had some special guests on this record and I think it’s going to be quite something….

Now excited to play at Celtic Connections with Mezcla - we have some brand new music that we’ll be playing live for the first time and some of it may well make an appearance on our first record, which we are recording later this year. 24th of January at The Blue Arrow, you can get tickets here:

https://www.thebluearrow.co.uk/events/2019-01-24-celtic-connections-mezcla-the-blue-arrow

And here we are again

I was pretty quiet over the festive season and was nice to have proper break. I come out of hibernation and it’s already 2019! Looking forward to lots of great music this year - I’m now in 5 (maybe 6) different projects, each with its own sound and set of great players and writers. Already have 2 recordings on the horizon: Fat Suit’s 4th album, and Mezcla’s debut album, can’t wait to get stuck into all of those! There is also going to be some new trio stuff and I’ll definitely be all over with all the projects throughout the year, keep an eye on the gigs page or my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/alanbenziemusic

Animals on the loose and the rarest of rare occurrences

Just finished a last couple of things before Christmas - firstly, we recorded an EP with Joe Williamson’s new band, Animal Society. Joe is the current Scottish Young Jazz Musician of the Year, but this music is pretty heavy and ferocious, perhaps more in line with prog rock (although there is certainly a strong jazz sensibility running through it). It is also just great fun! We’ll have some video up late winter/early spring 2019.

After that, we had a short run of Fat Suit dates to close out the year - and I played violin for the first time in 13 years… on stage… in front of an audience… we’ll see if that changes Santa’s judgement on whether I have been naughty or nice this year!

Trio time

Yes, it’s very nearly time for a wee Autumn tour with the trio, can’t wait! Dates are as follows:

6/10: Lyth Arts Centre, Wick
7/10: The Jazz Bar, Edinburgh
8/10: Jazz at The Future Inn, Bristol
9/10: Catstrand, New Galloway
11/10: The Blue Arrow, Glasgow
15/10: The Blue Lamp, Aberdeen
17/10: King’s Place, London (one set supporting Ethan Iverson at EFG London Jazz Festival)

My favourite time of year 

I'm sure I've written about how much I love the Autumn before, but as September draws near I can't help repeating myself. Thinking of Scottish jazz fixtures in early Autumn, it has to be Islay Jazz Festival! I will be there playing some solo piano and with Colin Steele Quintet. I went to see the quintet often when I was getting started, and so it will possibly be a little surreal playing that music myself, but I'm very much looking forward to it. 

Before that, a wee recording session with Fat-Suit doing some new tunes, so keep an eye out for that! Then later in the month Mezcla play at Glasgow's new jazz venue, The Blue Arrow, and I'll be playing with Brian Molley in New Galloway. Also doing a wee interview for an episode of The Jazz Podcast - a fun, chatty show that already features some of my favourite musicians - and I'll let you know when that's available. Looking further ahead, I'm gearing up for various recordings later in the year and a wee trio tour in November, more news on that soon... 

Time for a wee holiday

Well, that was a blast - 7 very enjoyable gigs at Edinburgh Jazz Festival, trio reunited in Wigan, Fat-Suit playing at a country music festival (I saw Steve Earle!), various bits and bobs, woah! Time for a wee holiday to the beautiful Isle of Arran. I've been over a good few times for gigs, but never just to relax and see the island, so really looking forward to that.

Before that, I will be heading down to the World Shakuhachi Festival in London to play with Zac Zinger. Zac is a friend and colleague from Berklee days, a multi-instrumentalist and composer/arranger/general badass - and yes, he will be playing jazz shakuhachi (it's a Japanese bamboo flute, and one of the go-to instruments for a "sound of Japan"). 

After I get back, I'll be playing at the notorious Boomtown festival with Fat-Suit and then at Dunoon Jazz Festival with Luca Manning - two VERY different gigs right there! I'll then be playing with Scottish Young Jazz Musician of the Year, Joe Williamson, for a live broadcast of BBC3's Jazz Now from their Edinburgh International Festival tent.

Oh, and I went over to play some tunes with Andrew the other day and he gave me a wee present... Guess it will live with me for a while and who knows, maybe with Marton after that?

Getting Busy

Summer is here and looking like it's going to be a good one, so lots of tennis for me, right? Well, maybe not. What is getting in the way of my (fairly healthy) addiction? Thankfully, it's gigs, and plenty of them. I have 7 gigs coming up in the Edinburgh Jazz Festival, the trio are playing at Wigan Jazz Festival, and Fat-Suit are playing at Under the Stars Festival in Yorkshire. I won't list them all here, that's what the gigs page is for! But it's going to be a fun July and my birthday is even in there somewhere too...

Woohoo!!

Over the moon to announce that Little Mysteries won Best Album in the 2018 Scottish Jazz Awards!! Thanks so much to everyone that voted for us, we are so thrilled that people liked the music enough to support us.

I wasn't actually able to attend the awards ceremony, as I was in France having an absolutely wonderful few days doing a play with music about Chet Baker, with trumpeter Colin Steele and actor Mike Maran. The play was great fun, the weather was fantastic, the food delicious and the hospitality outstanding - I was very reluctant to come home I must say!! Anyway, Andrew attended the ceremony on behalf of the trio and he scrubs up rather well, as you can see. I guess he'll be keeping hold of the trophy for a while...

Now looking forward to a rare Alan Benzie Quartet gig at the Jazz Bar on the 13th of June, then the Glasgow Jazz Festival - the Mezcla gig at Stereo on the 21st is going to be monstrous - we'll be playing some new music and doing a cool collaboration with visual artist Jamie Johnson. I'm also in a new put together by Scottish Young Jazz Musician of the Year Joe Williamson (also known for Square One and Spark Trio and pictured at Jazzahead, below). He's written some heavy stuff, which we'll be premiering at Bar Bloc later in the month. Also playing some groovy jazz/funk with Malcolm MacFarlane and a tribute to Chet Baker with Luca Manning - check out the gigs page for more details of all that. Woohoo!!

Just a wee update

Well, it's been a good couple of months. Been having a great time playing quite a few gigs with Mezcla, particularly Jazz in the Round in London - that is a cool gig!

I was also delighted to be one of the artists selected by Jazz From Scotland for support to attend Jazzahead, a massive jazz conference/expo/festival that happens in Bremen every April. It was a very intense experience, but also very interesting and useful and I hope to go again in the years to come. Thanks so much to Jazz From Scotland and Creative Scotland, as well as Music from Ireland, Improvised Music Company, Culture Ireland and the Irish Arts Council for making it all happen. 

May highlights include BBC Biggest Weekend with Mezcla in Perth on the 25th and trumpet beast Ryan Quigley's Quintet at Ronnie Scott's on the 29th. As ever, you can find details of these and others on the gigs page. 

Voting is also still open for the 2018 Scottish Jazz Awards! Head over to http://www.jazzfest.co.uk/awards/ and check it out if you haven't already. 

Scottish Jazz Awards

Really happy to announce that Little Mysteries is up for Best Album in the 2018 Scottish Jazz Awards! We are really proud of it, both the music and everything it took to get it done and out there, so we are very pleased that it was considered worthy of a nomination. I'm also up for Best Band with both Fat-Suit and Mezcla. If you would like to vote for us then you can do so here: http://www.jazzfest.co.uk/awards/ - deadline is the 24th of May and the ceremony will be on the 3rd of June. Fingers crossed...

You Must Believe In Spring

Originally "Chanson de Maxence", the English adaption of the Legrand/Demy song (probably best known to jazz lovers through piano great Bill Evans) has a rather different meaning to the original. It seems rather apt at the moment though, where heavy snowfall and generally miserable conditions seem to leave us with no option but to believe that Spring will come, despite all signs to the contrary. So, less tennis than I had hoped for in the relative calm after our release tour (at least it's a healthy addiction), but thankfully playing piano is an indoor activity most of the time. We have started getting some very nice reviews in for Little Mysteries, which create some warmth in the heart at least! This one from Ian Mann is particularly in depth - it's great that some people are still writing in long form in an age of character limits and sound bites. You can read it here: http://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/alan-benzie-trio-little-mysteries/

All good things, Little Mysteries and Aberdeen Jazz Festival

Happy New Year 2018 and "Little Mysteries" Release Tour

Happy 2018! This time of year can often drag a bit, with winter in full effect, and Christmas and Hogmanay no longer providing that festive focal point. But this is not the case for me this year, as I have the release of "Little Mysteries", our new Alan Benzie Trio album, to look forward to! We will be touring for a good chunk of February, here's where and when:

6/2: Opus Jazz Club, Budapest, Hungary
7/2: Metronom Jazz Club, Pecs, Hungary
8/2: ZWE Jazz Club, Vienna, Austria
9/2: Unterfahrt Jazz Club, Munich, Germany
10/2: Reduta Jazz Club, Prague, Czech Republic
11/2: Galeria Batko, Krakow, Poland
12/2: Kornet Jazz Club, Krakow, Poland
13/2: DALI Club, Krakow, Poland
14/2: Mozi Club, Samorin, Slovakia
15/2: B-Flat Jazz Club, Berlin, Germany
16/2: Jazzlines at Symphony Hall Foyer, Birmingham, England
18/2: Websters Theatre, Glasgow, Scotland
19/2: Arthur's, Dublin, Ireland
20/2: Ronnie Scott's, London, England
21/2: The Jazz Bar, Edinburgh, Scotland
22/2: The Jazz Co-op, Newcastle, England

I'll be updating the gigs page with more specifics on each gig as we get the final details, so check back there for more info!
 

"Little Mysteries" New Trio Video

The first video from the studio session for "Little Mysteries" is live - check it out!

Somehow, it's December...

It's been an interesting couple of months, can't believe the year is nearly done! The new album is coming along nicely, and we are really looking forward to releasing it February. We've had some super fun gigs with Fat-Suit, including a live recording alongside Jacob Collier for the BBC, which will be available on BBC iPlayer soon. Also had a lovely time at Dundee Jazz Festival with young vocalist Luca Manning, where we were supporting Becca Stevens - her music is just so cool, check her out if you aren't familiar with her already!

Just a couple of gigs left before Christmas, the highlights are a really fun double bill with Mezcla and Oxtered to the Bothy in Glasgow on the 11th, and Leah Gough-Cooper's Human Equivalent in Edinburgh on the 23rd. More details on the gigs page.

Best wishes for the festive season!

We did it!!

Delighted to announce that we exceeded our crowdfunder target - thank you so much to everyone that supported us! We will be releasing the album in February 2018, with a tour in Europe and the UK. More details to follow - you can check back here, or sign up to my mailing list and I'll let you know as things progress.

About that second album...

The rough tracks that we recorded at Castlesound Studios for our second Alan Benzie Trio album a while back are sounding great, and we are now looking for some help to finish the album (these things cost a lot of money!). Check out this video and our crowdfunder page where you can learn more and contribute (with some nice rewards).

"...September days are here, with summer’s best of weather and autumn’s best of cheer"

"Hard to imagine Helen Hunt Jackson writing this if she lived in Scotland", I think to myself as I watch the rain run down the window,  but that can't diminish my excitement that autumn is coming - that wonderful season of warmth and chill, the changing colours, optimism and wistfulness - I love it!  It's been a fantastic Summer: some great festival gigs with Fat-Suit, lots of fun with Mezcla, Edinburgh Jazz Festival and as much tennis as I could get in around all that... That's not to mention the undoubted highlight of the year for me, recording our second Alan Benzie Trio album! Getting that all ready for release will be one of my main activities this Autumn, and we will be releasing it in February 2018. I'll be announcing tour dates for that too, so keep an eye out.

Looking forward to more Mezcla and Fat-Suit good times too, and more immediately, Islay Jazz Festival. More details on the gigs page, hope to see some of you there - do come and say hello!

Edinburgh Jazz Festival

Just a wee heads up about some gigs coming up in the Edinburgh Jazz Festival, with my Piano Playlist project, a Birth of the Cool recreation project, and up and coming young vocalist Luca Manning. More details on the gigs page!

Scottish Jazz Awards and Trio Time

I'm delighted to announce that I've been nominated in the Rising Star category of the 2017 Scottish Jazz Awards, and also for Best Band and Best Album with Fat-Suit. While it does require a name and email address (to stop anyone cheating I guess!), there are only 5 categories and it should only take a minute or two at most. I'd really appreciate your vote - please follow this link: http://www.jazzfest.co.uk/awards/

Also very excited to have Marton and Andrew here next week, rehearsing some new Alan Benzie Trio material and generally making some nice music. Here's a wee reminder that we have ONE GIG in Scotland for the next good while, and it is next Thursday the 25th of May, at 8.30pm - don't miss it!

Piano Playlist and Spring highlights

Had a fantastic gig last night with my Piano Playlist project. A big thank you to Stephen and Brodie on drums and bass, to everyone at the Jazz Bar, and to everyone who came and listened so intently and applauded so enthusiastically - it's not always you can hear a pin drop in there, and it was such a pleasure to play in that environment! Quite a few of you signed up to my mailing list, but if there's anyone who missed that and would like to be in touch, you can sign up using the subscribe button at the bottom of this page, or get in touch through the contact page.

There are a couple of things I'm particularly looking forward to at the moment: Firstly, I'm recording some music in a couple of weeks, with a new band featuring Davie Dunsmuir on guitar, Gus Stirrat on bass, and Mark Scobbie on drums. We've all written some tunes and we've been having a lot of fun playing together - I'll post links to that when it's available.

Secondly, I'm getting together with Marton and Andrew for some more Alan Benzie Trio rehearsing in May. We will also be playing ONE GIG only, at the Jazz Bar on the 25th of May, including some new music that we still haven't played live yet. Come on down and be the first to hear it, it's shaping up very nicely!

Aberdeen Jazz Festival and Jazz Bar Galore

Thanks so much to everyone who came along to the Blue Lamp for my gigs in the Aberdeen Jazz Festival, it was great fun playing to packed rooms and appreciative ears both nights! There are a couple of wee clips of each gig on my Facebook page.

I have 3 gigs coming up at the Jazz Bar in Edinburgh - 2 "World Premier Quintet" sessions on Saturday the 25th of March and 1st of April, and another edition of my "Piano Playlist" gig on the Wednesday the 5th of April (all at 8.30pm). Piano Playlist features tunes by my favourite piano players, and this edition has Stephen Henderson on drums, and Brodie Jarvie on bass (back from Amsterdam for a few days).  Please do come down if you are in Edinburgh!

On the horizon (or a bit closer really)

It's been a great first bit of the year - Fat-Suit's gig at Celtic Connections was the definite February highlight. Now I'm really looking forward to 2 gigs in the Aberdeen Jazz Festival that are happening very soon: solo piano on the 15th of March at 8pm, and with Fat-Suit on the 18th of March at 11pm (both at the Blue Lamp). Come along and say hi if you are around!

Happy New Year

A rather belated one, admittedly! I’m really looking forward to 2017 - there are some exciting things in the pipeline with the trio and with Fat-Suit, as well as a few other projects and bits and bobs.

I really enjoyed getting together with Andrew and Marton to rehearse new material and experiment in November, and looking forward to sharing some of that over the next while. I’ll be sharing mostly through my new Facebook page, which will have slightly more regular updates, including stuff we are doing with the trio, Fat-Suit and other things I’m getting up to. If you would like to keep up to date with that, please head on over and give the page a like.

https://www.facebook.com/alanbenziemusic/

More immediately, Fat-Suit open up our 2017 with a gig at Celtic Connections, on Thursday the 2nd of February. We’ll be returning to St Luke’s and The Winged Ox, where we had an incredible album launch towards the end of last year. Further details here:

https://www.facebook.com/events/234126600367725/

All the best for a great 2017, and remember, if you’d like to get in touch with me, you can do so through the Contact page, my Facebook page, or come and say hi at a gig…

Cheers!

Trio assemble, judgements and the end draws near (kind of)...

Really enjoyed being down in London for a few days to rehearse, practice and generally try out various ideas with the trio for 5 days. Seeing as the London Jazz Festival was on at the same time, it would have been crazy not to catch a few gigs while I was down - my personal highlight was Julian Lage Trio, just incredible!

Not long after returning to Glasgow, I had the pleasure of being a judge for the semi-final of the Scottish Young Jazz Musician of the Year. I remember judging the final a few years ago, and being very impressed at the standard of playing and musicianship, and this was no different. I very much enjoyed listening to all the young musicians do their thing - a bit less pleasurable to try and pick only 5 to go through to the final mind you!

I then had back-to-back gigs at the Jazz Bar, the first being an outing for my “Piano Playlist” project (playing the music of some of my favourite pianists) with Doug Hough and Euan Burton, and the second being reunited with my dear friend and amazing saxophonist/composer Leah Gough-Cooper for her quartet. Both were great fun and many thanks to everyone who came out to listen.

Now looking forward to my last couple of gigs with Fat-Suit before Christmas, in Aberdeen (at the Blue Lamp of course!) and Inverness (at the Tooth and Claw), on the 14th and 15th of December respectively. We all know what happens after that…

A big thanks to everyone who has come to gigs, bought CDs and sent lovely messages this year, I can't wait to make more music for you in 2017. See you next year!

Fat Suit in Europe and Album Launch

Had an absolute blast in the Czech Republic and Poland with Fat Suit, great audiences, lots of delicious food, marvelous buildings and good times. Fat Suit then expanded considerably for our album launch in Glasgow, adding string octet, because why not? It was immense fun, thanks to everyone that came to pack the place full and danced, shouted and just generally made us feel fantastic. For anyone who missed it, or isn't able to catch us live, you can get the album here:

http://fatsuit.bigcartel.com/product/atlas

It's Too Darn Hot

Otherwise known as August in Japan - brutal! I got heatstroke the night I arrived, and took hydration and air conditioning much more seriously after that... On a brighter note, I had some lovely gigs and enjoyed catching up with my friends in Tokyo. The highlight was playing with Yumi Sugimoto's Jazz Orchestra in Kawagoe, Saitama. Kawagoe escaped much damage during World War II, and is often referred to as 小江戸 (Koedo or "Little Edo"), as it still has many buildings from the Edo period.

I have been playing Yumi's music since we studied together at Berklee College of Music, and have always very much enjoyed her sound world - it's a pianist's dream!

I was sad to leave Japan, but Narita Airport lifted my spirits beautifully with this:

Looking forward to touring with Fat Suit in the Czech Republic and Poland soon, and the album release is just around the corner. The official launch will be at St Luke's & The Winged Ox in Glasgow, on the 30th of October - come and join in the madness!

About last night...

Just wanted to say a BIG THANK YOU to everyone who came out to the Piano Playlist gig last night at the Jazz Bar for the Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival. It was fantastic to have the room packed full, and what an incredible vibe! We had an absolute blast playing for you all. Hope to see you again next time, and if you’d like to be in touch in the meantime, give me a shout through the Contact page.

Fat-Suit shenanigans, Edinburgh Jazz Festival and Japan (again)

I’ve been having a great time playing with Fat-Suit in various places around Scotland in the last couple of months. The highlight has to go to Shetland, what a beautiful place and what wonderful people! It was my first time up there and I can’t wait to go back. I also hear the new album is very close to being ready, I’ll link to it when it's out, but here's the wee teaser video in the meantime:

I’ve also been working on a lovely gig coming up in the Edinburgh Jazz Festival, where I’ll be playing music by 10 of my favourite piano players with Andrew Robb on bass and Neil Paton on drums. It was tough to pick just 10, but the gig has to end at some point! I’m really looking forward to playing with Andrew and Neil and do hope you will come and join us if you are around - we are playing on Saturday the 16th of July, at 8pm in the Jazz Bar on Chambers Street:

http://www.edinburghjazzfestival.com/explore/artists/alan-benzies-trio.html

I’ll also be playing with Fat-Suit on the 24th at La Belle Angele:

http://www.edinburghjazzfestival.com/explore/artists/fat-suit-werkha-live-band.html

I’m off to Japan again right after that, and very much looking forward to it. I’ve never been at this time of year before, so here’s hoping my poor Scottish body can cope with the heat and humidity (our summer isn’t exactly scorching). I hear there are flying cockroaches at this time of year too, just for good measure!

Hope to see some of you in Edinburgh, Tokyo or somewhere else.

Alan Benzie Trio on BBC Radio 3

The live session we did with the trio for The Jazz House is going to be re-broadcast on BBC Radio 3's "Jazz Line-Up" on Saturday the 16th of April! It's a great show and I'm delighted that they liked the music so much.

I went into the BBC yesterday to do a wee interview to go along with the music. We talked about some of the things that shape my writing, a little bit about how I came to music and jazz, and some non-music things too. If you'd like to hear about some of that and the trio playing a few tunes from "Traveller's Tales", do tune in on the 16th at 5pm!

Christmas and New Year in Japan, and Traveller's Tales featured in BBC's "The Jazz House" review of 2015

I had an absolute blast in Japan during the festive season, catching up with some of my friends from Berklee, eating far too much delicious food and making some great music! My first gig of the New Year was with Japanese trumpet player Takuya Kuroda, who's Blue Note album "Rising Son" I had been listening to quite a lot throughout 2015 - if you haven't heard it, do check it out. It was such fun to play some of that music with the man himself, and he sounded great on my tunes too. He also has a very funny sense of humour, I could barely eat dinner for laughing!

Joining us on drums was Shun Ishiwaka, who I was also very excited to play with, as he played drums on the soundtrack for a great jazz anime, "Sakamichi no Apollon". I watched the show when it came out, and I remember thinking, "Holy sh*t, that drummer sounds fantastic". Little did I realise that the guy playing was only a little older than the high school character he was musically portraying! I think Shun is 23 now, and sounded incredible - I wasn't surprised to hear he was getting a sore back from being so busy...

While I was in Japan, I was honoured and delighted to hear that "Traveller's Tales" was featured alongside the likes of Kamasi Washington, GoGo Penguin and Liane Carroll as one of BBC Radio Scotland's "The Jazz House" albums of the year in their review of 2015! We had a great time doing a live session for them around the time of the release tour and we're really pleased they liked the album so much.

After what seemed like a blink of an eye it was time to say goodbye and head back to Scotland. I'm now looking forward to another couple of gigs with Fat-Suit in Glasgow and Aberdeen, where we'll be playing some of the music from the new album, which I think is due to be released later this year. Glasgow is the 17th of March at Stereo, and Aberdeen is on the 19th of March at the Blue Lamp, as part of the Aberdeen Jazz Festival. Do come along and say hello if you are in the area!

What the critics are saying about "Traveller's Tales"

In my last post, I mentioned that we've had some lovely reviews coming in for "Traveller's Tales, and I thought I'd share a few of the nice things people have been saying about us in newspapers and online...

“Andrew Robb and Marton Juhasz on bass and drums are all about close ensemble interaction, and sometimes it’s as if their sounds were coming out from the inside of Benzie’s piano... Benzie’s playing has a hushed yet yearning quality to it; an exquisite touch and elegant virtuosity make for a thoroughly engaging listen.” Jazzwise

“Tasteful and well-judged, this trio makes a terrific team… (Benzie) has created a set of memorable tunes and his playing, plus that of his colleagues, is exemplary throughout. There is a radiance and beauty about this music and “Traveller’s Tales” deserves to bring Benzie to the attention of the wider jazz public.” The Jazz Mann

"This has to be one of the best debut albums for some time..." Sandy Brown Jazz

"Benzie doesn't sound like a young artist struggling for a voice... There's an affecting sense of place in the quiet ostinatos and modulations of Hazy Dawns...but with drummer Marton Juhasz and bassist Andrew Robb, the trio fire up plenty of dynamism too..." The Guardian

"This album is the work of an already strong voice and road-hardened group that presents Benzie's music with empathy and understanding... No background knowledge is required to enjoy Benzie's clear articulation and thoroughly engaging musicality." The Herald

"A fine piece of work... Luminously toned, atmospheric and often impressionistic music that suggests it has been the result of careful consideration... Highly engaging." The Scotsman

"Benzie's imagistic style recalls John Taylor's a little, perhaps Bobo Stenson... I particularly liked the pensive, brooding quality of "A Wandering Mist" that is then developed extensively and shows layers of intricacy in trio interplay... the Benzie compositions are strong and his mastery of the piano impressive..." Marlbank

"Not your usual piano trio album - far from it... He comes across as in inventive pianist and creative composer devoid of cliches..." Bebop Spoken Here

Suddenly grabbed by the desperate urge to buy a copy or three? Head over to the Buy page for more info!

Alan Benzie Trio in Europe, British Jazz Awards and London Jazz Festival

It's been a great few months since we released "Traveller's Tales" with the trio - a big thank you to everyone who came out to see us during the release tour! I'm really pleased to say that we've had some lovely reviews coming in too. We were on the road again in September, playing in Hungary, Austria and Germany, including a live broadcast for Austrian Radio, and fantastic gigs at Opus Jazz Club (a relatively new club in Budapest) and the venerable Jazzkeller in Frankfurt. Here's a wee video from the end of our gig at Opus, with Marton tearing it up on Andrew's tune "Dream Snatcher":

After coming back to Scotland, I was honoured and delighted to be nominated in the "Rising Star" category of the 2015 British Jazz Awards for the second year in a row. As winter set in, I had 2 great gigs to look forward to in the London Jazz Festival - one with the trio and one with Fat-Suit. Ian Mann from thejazzmann.com had some very kind words to say, as well as a pretty colourful way of highlighting the quite different things I do in each band: "I’d seen Benzie at Kings Place a week before leading his highly accomplished acoustic piano trio but here he was in his other role as ‘wizard of the synth’... this gig was a further demonstration of his prodigious ability and versatility." Thanks Ian! I'll be needing to get a pointy hat and a wand for the next gig...